


out the window

by peachsneakers



Series: flufftober [26]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Autistic Logic | Logan Sanders, Creativity | Roman "Princey" Sanders & Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders Are Twins, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Logic | Logan Sanders & Morality | Patton Sanders Are Siblings, Running Away, maybe? - Freeform, platonic intrulogical - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-16
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-14 03:41:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,740
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28788888
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/peachsneakers/pseuds/peachsneakers
Summary: Logan runs away.
Relationships: Dark Creativity | Remus "The Duke" Sanders & Logic | Logan Sanders
Series: flufftober [26]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1969483
Comments: 20
Kudos: 103





	out the window

**Author's Note:**

> prompt: on the road

Logan bites his bottom lip, willing it to stop trembling. He should have known better. He _did_ know better, it's just-

"You aren't supposed to play with Patton's things by yourself," his mother scolds. White hot anger trickles down his throat, burning his stomach.

"Mom, it's fine," Patton tries to argue. "I told him he could."

"That's very nice of you, Patton, but Logan knows better," their mother says, sighing.

"If anyone should know better, it's _you_ ," Logan blurts out without thinking. Mom gasps, her eyes narrowing in anger, but he continues, his words spilling over each other, fast and furious. "Patton isn't even the one who likes astronomy! It's _me_! You promised _me_ you'd get me a telescope, but then you got it for _Patton_! It's not fair!"

"I-" Mom closes her mouth once, twice. She looks like a landed fish. Her gaze switches to Patton. "Pat? Is that true?"

"I mean, I like the stars all right," Patton mumbles helplessly, adding a shrug. "But um, Logan's right. He's the one who really likes them."

"I- Why didn't you _tell_ me?" She asks. Red burns high in her cheeks. "I would have-"

"I _tried_ to tell you," Logan accidentally interrupts. "You wouldn't listen." His shoulders slump.

"We'll talk about this later," their mom decides. "Go to your rooms."

Logan stomps his way into his room, barely resisting the urge to slam the door. His eyes prickle with heat and unshed tears. Why can't she just _listen_? She _never_ listens! Never, ever! Not her and not Dad, either! Otherwise, _Logan_ would be the one with the telescope. Patton doesn't walk in the stars like Logan longs to. 

_I wanna run away,_ he thinks, the thought suddenly blooming to life. He'll miss Patton, but maybe Patton will run away, too. Maybe they can run away together! He scrunches his eyebrows as he tries to telepathically send the thought over to Patton. He doesn't know if it works, but he hopes so. He's always wished he could be a telepath. It would be so cool! Especially if he could talk to his brother like this. Then it would be okay.

Mind made up, Logan throws himself into a flurry of activity, being as quiet as he can. His backpack slowly bulges with spare clothes, his inhaler, star drawings, and as many stuffed animals as he can fit. He bids a silent, slightly teary farewell to the others. Maybe he can get Patton to send them later. Once he figures out where he's going.

Leaving by the front door is out. His mom is down there, and she's probably still steaming mad. He eyes the window with trepidation. There _is_ a tree out there. He's climbed up and down it multiple times. Never from his _window_ before, though.

_There's a first time for everything,_ Logan decides and carefully unlatches the window, pushing out the screen and catching it before it can fall to the ground and make a noise. He sets it inside on the floor, as gently as possible.

Shimmying his way out the window, his shoe seeks the nearest branch. Rain spatters his face, dampening his hair and his clothes within minutes. He frowns, staring back into the warm comfort of his room. But he's come too far to turn back now, hasn't he? He doesn't even know how to put the screen back in the window! If he's going to be in trouble, it might as well be for something he's actually _done_ , not something he chickened out of doing. Swallowing hard, Logan makes it fully out the window, clutching the rain-slick bark of the tree in a death grip. He's out!

The journey downward is the stuff of nightmares. Rain keeps splattering his face, drenching his glasses, and it's mostly from memory that he's able to stumble his way to the ground at all. When his feet finally touch grass, Logan is tempted to go hands and knees and kiss terra firma. He only barely resists. He's not out of the woods yet, after all. He thinks that's the right expression, even though there are no woods for miles.

He picks a direction at random, heading unerringly for Remus's house. Maybe he can hide in their backyard while he figures out what to do next. It isn't hard to sneak into their back lawn and huddle beneath the farthest tree. That way, he's partially protected from the rain.

The back door opens and he hears Remus shout, "I'll be just a minute!" Moments later, they come face to face. Remus blinks.

"Logan?" He asks in a cautious voice. "Why are you in my backyard?" Unexpected tears fill Logan's eyes.

"I'm running away," he declares. Remus looks cautiously around.

"But your house is just right there," he points out.

"I don't know where to go," Logan confesses, sniffling. "I don't wanna get hurt, but I-" He sniffles again, and the whole story comes pouring out. Remus listens sympathetically the whole way through, occasionally patting Logan's damp knee.

"I can try to sneak you in," Remus offers. "Then you can meet Jack!"

"Jack?" Logan questions.

"Our new cat," Remus beams. "He's really cute!"

"I think I'm allergic to cats," Logan says, crestfallen. "Or maybe that's just Patton," he reflects. "I think maybe it's just Patton."

"Wanna find out?" Remus asks. His smile is conspiratorial. 

"Yeah," Logan admits.

"Okay, I gotta sneak you in," Remus says, glancing up toward his house. "But Mom's busy making dinner, so I think it's okay."

"Okay," Logan says, hitching up the straps of his backpack. Anxiety is a cold, sodden lump in his stomach as he follows Remus back up to the house, watching Remus detour to snag an enormous octopus toy from the grass.

"Forgot him out here," Remus explains, his cheeks flushed.

No one's in sight as Remus sneaks Logan in the house and up the stairs. Roman's door is closed, so it's easy to tiptoe into Remus's room.

"Make yourself at home," Remus says, waving his arms around. "Wanna just stay here? That's still running away, right? You aren't _home_."

"I'm on the road," Logan says solemnly, before the pair of them burst into muffled giggles. Somewhere in the middle, Logan starts to cry, and Remus instantly goes to him, patting him awkwardly on the back.

"It will be okay," Remus comforts him. "I promise."

"I yelled at my mom," Logan says in a shamed whisper, returning to his problem. "She just- she made me so _mad_. I got in trouble for touching Patton's telescope. But _Patton_ isn't even the one who loves astronomy. I am. They got it wrong. Again." He sighs. "I just want them to _listen_ ," he mumbles, staring down into his lap.

There is a commotion downstairs and Logan freezes. Remus jumps into action, pushing him into the closet, backpack and all. Not a moment too soon, as Remus's door creaks open and Remus's mom peeks inside.

"Remus?" She asks. She looks very worried, and guilt squirms, hot and sour, in Logan's throat. "Have you heard from Logan today?"

"Why?" Remus asks. 

"He's- well, honey, his mom is downstairs," she says. "He's- he's missing." Remus glances at the closet door and his mom doesn't catch it.

"Missing?" Remus squeaks, putting on a performance to rival Broadway. "What's that mean?"

"His mother can't find him," she explains. "Did he tell you anything at school?"

"No," Remus says, truthful. "He didn't say nothing."

"Anything," his mom gently corrects. "If you see him, tell me, okay? His mom's sick with worry. He went out the window, apparently."

"Whoa," Remus breathes in awe. His mom sighs and ruffles his hair.

"He could have hurt himself," she reminds him. "That's very dangerous."

Logan speaks before he can help himself, the words tiny and tear-thickened.

"She's worried?"

Remus's mom's eyes rake the room before she comes over to the closet and opens the door. Logan looks up at her with tear-blurred eyes and her face softens, seeing the bedraggled state he's in.

"Yes," she says gently. "Your mother is very worried, Logan. What's wrong, kiddo? Why did you leave?"

The whole story comes pouring out a second time. Her eyes get very squinty when she hears about the telescope, but she doesn't say anything until he's done. She squeezes his hands softly, urging him to look up at her. He focuses on her nose and the freckles that dot it.

"Sometimes parents mess up," she says. "It's not fair, and it isn't okay, but it happens. We're only human, after all. We aren't perfect. We can't be. Your mom needed to hear that, I think. It isn't fair to you or to Patton, to punish you when the telescope was supposed to be yours to begin with, and it sounds like Patton recognizes that, and doesn't mind. But Logan, you can't just leave like that. Something very bad could have happened to you. What would have happened if you had fallen out of the tree? If Remus hadn't found you?"

"I don't know," Logan mumbles, staring back down at the ground. His cheeks feel very hot.

"You could have gotten badly hurt," she says. "It's dangerous to climb trees without adult supervision, especially when it's raining. You don't have a jacket on, you could end up sick. I'm just glad that you felt safe enough to come _here_ before anything awful happened."

"It's safe here," Logan says before he can stop himself. Her face softens even more and she reaches out, tucking a tendril of hair behind his ear.

"I'm glad that you feel that way," she says. Her eyes are suspiciously shiny. "Your mom's still downstairs. Do you think you can come down with me now? And explain? I can help you, if you want."

"Yes, please," Logan says at once. An adult in his corner? Sign him up! 

"You can come, too," she tells Remus. "I'm glad that you're such a good friend to Logan, sweetheart, but sometimes things are a little too complicated and they require a grownup, okay? Like now."

"Okay," Remus says, subdued. His ears are red. "I just wanted-"

"I know," she soothes. "You aren't in trouble, Remus. Thank you for helping to keep Logan safe." Remus perks back up, his eyes shining, as his mom takes Logan's chilled hand.

"Let's go, kiddo," she says. "It will be okay."

As Logan follows her, he desperately hopes that she's right.


End file.
